The FBI Declared QAnon a Domestic Terrorism Threat -- and Conspiracy Theorists Are Psyched
AUGUST 2, 2019 2:14PM ET
The El Paso shooter had ties to QAnon.
An internal FBI memo classified QAnon and other conspiracy theories as a threat — and the move could make them stronger
By EJ DICKSON
QAnon believers have had a rough summer. Trump’s July 4th rally, when many believed the late John F. Kennedy Jr. would emerge from hiding to claim his rightful role as Trump’s running mate, came and went. So did July 31st, the projected date of “declas,” or the moment when the community believed that declassified documents pointing to deep state corruption would finally be dropped. Now, in what is perhaps the ultimate example of kicking someone while they’re down, Yahoo News has published a 15-page internal memo from the FBI declaring conspiracy theories a domestic terrorism threat.
Distributed on May 30th, the memo from the bureau’s Phoenix office notes that it is the first report of its kind to take aim at “conspiracy-driven domestic terrorism,” citing a number of violent incidents the bureau believes were linked to conspiracy theories. “The FBI assesses these conspiracy theories very likely will emerge, spread, and evolve in the modern information marketplace, occasionally driving both groups and individual extremists to carry out criminal or violent acts,” the document says.
Although the memo lists a number of such theories, including Pizzagate and the conspiracy surrounding the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, it pays particular notice to QAnon, the wide-ranging (and extremely non-evidence-based) theory suggesting that Hillary Clinton and other high-ranking Democratic officials are engaged in a child sex trafficking ring, and that President Trump will one day arrest them and send them to Guantanamo Bay. QAnon followers also believe that the Mueller report was a smokescreen for Mueller and Trump’s secret investigation into the Democratic officials and other “global elites.” While originating from the smaller corners of the internet, such as anonymous message boards and sites like 4chan, the theory has since gained traction in the mainstream thanks to proponents like Roseanne Barr publicly endorsing it, as well as President Trump himself retweeting a QAnon-related account earlier this week. (The account was subsequently suspended by Twitter.)
More: https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/qanon-domestic-terrorism-threat-conspiracy-theory-866288/
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